Internet Diffusion

Internet Users by Area Source: Eurisko- July 1999

As of May 2000, 21% of the total population was online in Italy compared to 55% in the US. Less then one third of Italy's population understands English, and of course of those that understand English the majority are on line. A Censis Study found that 91% of internet users were seeking information, 72% used the internet for email and 10.6% used it for electronic commerce. Also in an April of 1999 survey, 37% of the people in Italy online were women. Women make up 44-46% of the new users on the Internet. Furthermore, the ratio of women online in Italy is higher than the European average. It is also interesting to note that very few people buy online and the few that due buy products get from the US. A recent Ipsos -Explorer survey, indicates that the majority of people that buy online are men ages 25-44, with high education and income.

Internet hosts per 1000 inhabitants, in the OECD area, Sept 1999

Source: OECD based on Telcordia Technologies (www.netsizer.com)

Internet hosts per 1000 inhabitants

These data are based on a survey undertaken by Network Wizards for the Internet Software Consortium (ISC). Internet hosts under generic top-level domains (.com, .org and .net) have been reallocated according to the proportion of gTLDs registered by users in each country. The registration data for January 2000 was contributed by Matthew Zook.
Source : ISC, OECD.

Average Price for 20 hours of Internet access (1995-2000) and Internet host penetration

Note: Data on hosts for Luxenburg is from mid-1999. Internet access costs include VAT.
Source: OECD (www.oecd.org/dsti/sti/it/cm) and Telcordia Technologies (www.netsizer.com)

Government Use of Information Technology

The former Italian Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema initiated plans to switch the federal government and public administration offices procurement processes online this past summer. The responsibility for this e-procurement plan was delegated to Consip, a company controlled by the treasury ministry. By doing this, the state hoped to stimulate technological development and innovation in Italy. In fact the next Italian Prime Minister, Giuliano Amato gave credit to the Internet and email for helping to establish his coalition government. The government is trying to lead by example, although 40% of the Italian population says they don't trust the state administration to make correct use of their personal data. The government hopes that the more people get used to seeing services online, the more they will use them.